Choice Equals Power!
 
The power to choose your actions is painfully undervalued, underestimated, and underutilized.  In reality, you choose every single one of your actions.  For example, no one is forcing you to read these words. 
 
You are choosing to read these words.
 
Aside from birth, you, your self, has chosen to do every single act in your life.  And, going forward, you, your SELF will choose every single act.  Indeed, our choices are usually based on a decision process.  And, to be sure, sometimes fear, family, friends, and foe INFLUENCE our decision process.
 
Thus, this is a fundamental point:
 
You control you.  No one else controls you.
 
Other people may influence you.  Other people may influence your behavior.  Other people may influence your decisions.  Other decisions and outcomes may influence, limit, or expand your choices and associated decisions.  However…
 
You are the main supervisor of you.
 
You are the ultimate director of you.
 
You are the powerful president of you.
 
You are the earthly (little ‘g’) god of you.
 
Accordingly, you are in control of you.
 
And, as director, president, and (little ‘g’) god of your self, you have the ultimate power over you.  People may influence you.  But no one can make you do anything. 
 
No one else controls you. 
 
You control you. 
 
As soon as you think (or believe) that other people have power over you, that thought becomes reality… and they instantly have power over you.
 
If you have a job, no one is forcing you to work.  
 
You have elected to have a job in order to achieve a certain quality of life. 
 
In essence, people who have jobs have accepted the understanding that a good day’s work provides a good day’s pay.  Cumulatively speaking, a week’s worth of a good day’s pay equals a decent paycheck.   When we choose to work, we are accepting the deal that we will be paid for our work.  We then adapt to that deal by choosing to work.  By accepting and adapting to this deal, we receive a financial exchange for our labor.
 
Yes, we work to get money.  But let’s not forget the title of this blog post….
 
           ~ Choice equals Power ~
 
If you have a job, you CHOOSE to work.  Working provides the power to buy things.  Your choice to work gives you buying power.  And, let’s not forget that our primary job in life is to survive. 
 
So here’s a good question: If your main job in life is to survive, what are you (not) choosing to do in order to increase the likelihood of your survivability?  What are you doing today to ensure your life is better today than it was yesterday?  Are you locked into a daily struggle for everyday survival by choosing to do the “same stuff; different day?”  What seemingly mundane choices comprise or compromise your lifestyle?  
 
Are you choosing the best options for your life?
 
Or like many people, are you choosing to give your power to other people, events, and situations?
 
Do you blame other people, events, and situations for your current lifestyle?
 
Your answer to that question may have significant meaning to you.  And, to be sure, it seems that bad things often happen to good people like you.
 
However, regardless of your situation… regardless of how you arrived here, you still have the awesome power of choice to get to THERE (wherever "there" might be).
 
You are the one who chooses how to move on from here.  Of course, there are some people who refuse to believe that we, ourselves (our selves), have the ultimate power over our SELF.  Those people have already chosen to give their power to other people, events, and situations. 
 
Remember:
 
As soon as you think (or believe) that other people have power over you, that thought becomes reality… and those people, events, and situations instantly have power over you.
 
Here’s an interesting fact to consider: Up until now, your birthplace, your family, your childhood, and other experiences have quite a bit to say about who you are.  On the other hand, relatively speaking, all those things have little or nothing to say about who you can become. 
 
YOU have the most to say about that!
 
Here’s the Idea:
Only you control you.  Other people may influence you.  However, when it comes to you, the most powerful person in the world is you. 
 
Here’s the Deal:
Astronauts don’t get lucky; they choose their ideal profession; and they go for it.  It may take a while, but for astronauts, the sky is the limit because they accept, adapt, and achieve.  They create their very own future with goals, plans, and actions.
 
Likewise, you have the power to literally create the mindset, and thus the next minute, month, and next half of your life.  And a lot depends on whether or not you see the world as a mountain or a molehill. 
 
In reality, the best way to predict the future…
 
           … is to create it…
 
Next week: Get. Give. Grow.

Last week: Ones and Zeros
 
Accept. Adapt. Achieve. ®
 
What do YOU want to achieve?
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
This is Part 3 of a 30-part series on how to achieve The Ideal Life.
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Think about the word IDEAL.  It is actually a conglomeration of several smaller words, specifically:
 
       ~  I  ~  ID  ~  IDEA  ~  DEAL  ~  IDEAL  ~
 
In the final analysis, if you can learn to master your Id (as in the ego, id, and superego), you can do some rather amazing things. 
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
© 2011-2016 John H. Clark III
Parts excerpted from…
The Ideal: Your Guide to An Ideal Life
(220 pages, BFG Press, 11/11/11)
 
 
 
 
 

​Ones and Zeros...

Computers are almost everywhere these days.  In fact, very sophisticated computers are the genius behind today’s late-model cars, enabling them to perform amazing feats. Because of the complex mind of computers, for example, some cars can literally parallel park themselves… without the driver’s assistance.  Rolling off the assembly line later this year is the mass-market, almost fully computerized electric Tesla 3 – a watershed event in the computerized auto industry.
 
Elsewhere in our lives, computers allow us to choose among hundreds of thousands of television shows and movies.  And, as you well know, computers now allow us to buy almost any song ever recorded… via iTunes, Pandora, Spotify, and other digital music stores. 
 
As a music lover and former DJ, I am in awe… Millions of songs are now at our fingertips - accessible at a moments notice; we no longer need cassette tapes, 8-tracks… or even compact discs (CDs) to instantaneously bring up our favorite tunes. 
 
Equally stunning, computers have allowed us to launch spacecraft far into space, and to subsequently view some of the most spectacular spheres in our solar system.  In fact, computers placed in orbiting satellites now allow us to see stars, nebulae, and space dust far beyond the setting sun.
 
This blog post you are reading was created on a computer in Hawaii, then transferred to literally millions of other computers on the Internet.
 
Notwithstanding all of the great afore-listed capabilities, the computer, itself, is actually the most phenomenal machine of them all.
 
Indeed, despite all of those wonders, the most amazing thing about computers is the fact that the MOST sophisticated computer in the world uses the exact same decision process as the LEAST sophisticated computer. 
 
Regardless of how big or small they are…
 
Despite vast differences in color, shape, and apparent complexity…
 
All computer algorithms are based on multiple iterations of one very simple question: 
 
           Is the data a ‘1’ or a ‘0’?
 
Sure, several years ago, we were impressed by computers that could perform thousands of calculations per second.  And then we were enamored with computers that could do “ten thousand thousand” computations per second – ten million seemed like such a big number.
 
Fascinatingly, some of today’s computers perform billions of calculations per second.   Yet, the same basic question applies: is the data a ‘1’ or a ‘0’? 
 
If the data is a ‘1,’ the computer does one particular thing. 
 
If the data is a ‘0,’ the computer “decides” to do something totally different. 
 
THIS or THAT?
 
And when computer programs combine a million billion choices between this or that, the programs have the collective decision process to enable cars to parallel park without any assistance from drivers. 
 
When programmers combine a million billion decisions, programmers actually create a decision process that decides whether or not to send a spaceship to the moon, to Saturn, or somewhere in-between.  Literally every decision is “this or that.”  And if the programmers want this to happen, they simply re-program the software to do this and not do that.
 
And, yes… when YOU combine a million billion decisions, YOU arrive where YOU are now.  You are facing decisions once again.  And depending on what you decide to do NEXT, you, too, can re-program your life.
 
More importantly, you will soon have the data to take you places where you never thought possible.
 
But in this case, the question will not be, “Is the data a ‘1’ or a ‘0’ ?”
 
You are not a computer. However, like a computer, you make binary decisions.  Your decisions take you this way or that way… but never both ways. 
 
The question is:  What will you do with the data?
 
What will you do with the information gained from your experience, your lessons learned, this blog, and your time invested on this website?  Will you use the information to blast off far beyond this intersection of space and time?  Or will you choose to simply read this blog as if it were meant for sheer, mere entertainment?
 
Computer programs facilitate the phenomenally fast achievement of long, laborious, and previously impossible tasks.  And we are especially thankful for the ability to Skype, Facetime, email, and read random blog posts by altruistic members of society.
 
But have we actually underestimated the simplicity of the computer?

​Have we overlooked how special it is to be able to perform one specific decision… and then act upon that decision to do this or that? 

​Imagine looking down at a decision “T”.

​If you decide to choose the decision on the left, you are (by definition) walking AWAY from the choice on the right.
 
Likewise, and choice to go right pushes you farther from the results of the decision on the left (and “no” this is not a political discussion).
 
Our lives are a series of 1’s and 0’s.
 
This OR That?
 
Left OR Right?
 
Up OR Down?
 
Buy, Sell, or Hold?
 
Yes… sometimes there are more than two choices.  But, in the end, we have only one decision to make… and one ultimate selection.
 
However, most of us think the decisions are a zero-sum game.  In other words, we often look upon our past at “what could have been.”  Indeed, many of us think we should have gone LEFT instead of choosing to go RIGHT.  Some of us wish we would have went with a ONE and not a ZERO.
 
But in reality, at some point, regardless of which meandering path we took to get here, we likely would have ended up in the exact same place.
 
The bigger, more appropriate and actionable question is, “Where do we go from here?”
 
As for all those other decisions… that’s just data.
 
In fact, every single factor in your life is just data.
 
Your education, your limitations, and your concentrations… they’re all just data.
 
Your strengths, your weaknesses, your wishes, and your dreams – all just data.
 
           You, my friend, give meaning to all of this data.
 
You are the energy that makes it marvelously magical.
 
On the other hand, you could also be the force that makes it fiercely fearful.
 
When someone cuts you off in your car, do you seek immediate vengeance… even if it’s a waving a little birdie?
 
When someone at work (obviously and purposefully) undermines your authority, determination, and inspiration, do you seek out ways to achieve retribution… even it means literally “getting even” – stooping as low as they are?
 
Or do you see their behavior as just another data point on your journey through the million-billionth calculation for the day?
 
Regardless of what “they” do, it’s all just data.
 
The question is: What are you going to do with that data?
 
Choose wisely.
 
HERE’S THE IDEA:
In reality, even the most complicated evaluations can be reduced down to one binary decision point. Emotions are certainly a huge part of our lives.  But emotions are only one particular data point.  All too often, we react when we should simply act in accordance with our capabilities. 
 
HERE’S THE DEAL:
As we speed past one daily decision point into another… and then another… we need to invest time to enhance our capabilities.  How is this enhancement possible?  Focus on the positive.  I realize this sounds painfully simple.  That’s because IT IS painfully simple.  When we FOCUS on the positive, we literally lose sight of the negative.  It’s simple, right?  Moreover, when we CONTINUALLY focus on the positive, we will find more positive parts to this amazing thing called life.

Next week: Choice Equals Power

Last week:  Everything. Anything. YOUR Thing...

Accept. Adapt. Achieve. ®
 
What do YOU want to achieve?
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
This is Part 2 of a 30-part series on how to achieve The Ideal Life.
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Think about the word IDEAL.  It is actually a conglomeration of several smaller words, specifically:
 
           ~  I  ~  ID  ~  IDEA  ~  DEAL  ~  IDEAL  ~
 
In the final analysis, if you can learn to master your Id (as in the ego, id, and superego), you can do some rather amazing things. 
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
© 2011-2016 John H. Clark III
Parts excerpted from The Ideal: Your Guide to An Ideal Life 
​Available at Amazon.com 
220 pages, BFG Press 11/11/11

Everything. Anything. YOUR Thing...

​This short blog post may appear far too simple.  Perhaps it is.  But consider the simple act of walking.  Placing one foot in front of the other requires an amazingly complex set of coordinated events among your thoughts, muscles, tendons, bones, and the earth. 
 
Believe it or not, liquid flowing within your ears actually helps maintain your sense of balance as you walk, totally unaware of the complexity of something most of us do every single day.  Of course, after the age of two, we think of walking as something that's very “simple.”
 
Yet, simple things aren’t necessarily easy.
 
For example, consider the act of deciding what to do next…
 
Despite the best plans, perfect processes, and proper priorities, we simply can’t do everything.  Oh sure… technology has certainly evolved to help us do more.
 
In fact, in today’s technologically integrated world, many things happen almost instantaneously. 

We click a button and thousands of miles away someone receives an electronic letter, a picture, or a plan for a new process.  Through the invention of cell phones, we can now call anyone from almost anywhere.  
 
And because of the availability of today’s fabulous electronic gadgetry, we can do almost anything, anywhere.
 
Of course, that last statement isn’t true at all. 
 
We simply can’t do almost anything… anywhere. 
 
In fact, in some aspects of our lives, technology has actually reduced our ability to get things done.  Computers, cell phones (which are actually little computers), music devices (more little computers), and various other attention-getters can actually decrease our ability to consider, develop, and improve upon our ideal landscape.
 
Instead of doing almost anything anywhere, many of us are trying to do everything everyday.  And because we think it’s ok to try to do everything, we seem to be willing to do anything to get “it” done. 
 
Making matters worse… because we are so accustomed to answering this, watching that, clicking here, switching there… some people actually feel disengaged from our world when their inbox is empty; when their “reality” shows are not really on; or when their cell phones are not ringing, chiming, or mesmerizing!
 
How did this happen?
 
How did we independently become so dependent on the interdependence of our dependencies?  How did we lose sight of the significant importance of our independence?
 
How did all of this technology make us so interconnected while mitigating and marginalizing our significant sense of self… ultimately making us seem significantly insignificant in a world far more connected than ever before?
 
How did we get to the point where we know so much about technology, and yet we know so little about ourselves?
 
It’s time for a change.
 
Beginning today, forget “everything.” 
 
And before you do anything… simply invest 30 quick minutes and think about YOUR thing. 
 
What is it that YOU want to do… next? 
 
Why is this time of thought regarding next important?
 
Let’s review the obvious facts:
1.         You can’t do everything.
2.         You can do almost anything.
3.         You must choose your thing… or have it chosen for you.
 
To try to do everything is literally impossible.  
 
And since it’s impossible to do everything, we should shift our focus and choose to do a smaller set of everything. The hundred-thousand-dollar question is:
 
Which things should you choose to do?
 
From what part of everything can you choose?
 
For many people, the list of possible lifestyles is endless.  
 
From apple farmer to zookeeper… from archer to Zoroastrian… many people are physically unlimited in their ability to choose and achieve certain occupations and professions in life.
 
However, (dare I say) all of us are physically, mentally, emotionally, or (some other) resource-challenged and simply cannot do some of the things that others can do. 
 
Quadriplegics don’t usually physically run with their legs; but some can blaze trails around you and me spiritually and intellectually.  Blind people don’t usually read with their eyes; but they can often “see” much more of the richness of life than the wealthiest of the wealthy. 
 
And YOU don’t usually (insert your real or perceived limitation here).   But you know you can (insert your real or perceived superpower here).
 
Perhaps the list of things that people can’t do is immeasurably long. 
 
Perhaps you feel (or know) there are significant an limitations on what you can personally do. 
 
Aside from your long list of limitations, if you really think about it… you can probably still do just about anything.
 
In other words, stop reviewing the reasons why you think you can’t do something… and build upon the one good reason why you know it can be done.
 
You definitely have a gift; that’s YOUR thing.
 
The people with whom you live, work, and play (also) have a unique set of values, ideas, and solutions, and they can offer tremendous insight as you develop the specifics of your next step.
 
Those connections are important.
 
But you and your individual thoughts… those are what matter most, dear neighbor.
 
What’s YOUR thing?
 
Remember: The points in this short blog post might appear amazingly simple.  I’m okay with that.  In the grand scheme of things, we are born; we eat; we meet; we live; and we die.
 
Perhaps all of it is just… that… simple.
 
And even if we try to complicate this thing called life, it all starts the same…
 
Indeed, an exceedingly long, convoluted journey and a short jaunt from here to there both start with the exact same thing: the next, first step. 
 
It’s simple, right?
 
Simple things aren’t necessarily easy.
 
This series is designed to make finding your ideal life a tad bit easier.
 
Next week: Ones and Zeros
 
HERE’S THE IDEA:
In reality, your list of limitations pales when compared to the universe of things you can do. 
 
HERE’S THE DEAL:
Once you accept the fact that you can’t do everything, you will more clearly understand and see what you can do.  You can do almost anything.  The big question is, “What do you really want to do?”  Answer that question, and you are well on your way to living The Ideal life.
 
Accept. Adapt. Achieve. ®
 
What do YOU want to achieve?
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
This is Part 1 of a 30-part series on how to achieve The Ideal Life.
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Think about the word IDEAL.  It is actually a conglomeration of several smaller words, specifically:
 
      ~  I  ~  ID  ~  IDEA  ~  DEAL  ~  IDEAL  ~
 
In the final analysis, if you can learn to master your Id (as in the ego, id, and superego), you can do some rather amazing things. 
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
© 2011-2016 John H. Clark III
Parts excerpted from
The Ideal: Your Guide to An Ideal Life
(220 pages, BFG Press, 11/11/11)
 
 

Yes, it’s true.
 
Someone is watching you.
 
Whether you realize it or not, someone has their eyes on you.
 
Someone knows your habits, your lifestyle, and the little things you do.
 
Of course, they know the big things, too.
 
They are aware of all that you do: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
 
The good is practically great. 
 
But you could do better.
 
The bad?  Well, no one is perfect, right?
 
The ugly? 
 
That’s something you are going to have to work on.
 
Believe it or not, this is a good thing.
 
As an employee with more authority and a greater span of control, your supervisor has an implied responsibility to ensure your success.  Thus, he or she must watch you; your supervisor must prepare you for the next level of responsibility.  Are you ready?  Are you OK with “being watched”?
 
As a supervisor, you, too have a boss.  But the Watcher is not just your boss; it is also your team of employees.  They listen to what you say; they watch how you act, and they secretly want to believe everything you say.  But do your actions match your words?  Are you capable, culpable, and credible when it comes to leading them to where ALL OF YOU need to be?  You represent their future, literally and figuratively.
 
As a parent, your actions have far-reaching repercussions.  Your children are your literal legacy; they are a living testament to how you have affected the world… and how the world will soon be impacted by their respective actions. 
 
Your son cannot help but to be appreciative of you.  You are his launchpad; you are the very foundation of who he might be.  Your daughter is a malleable maiden of magnificence.  She watches you, listening, learning, and yearning for the day when she, too, will lead young minds to greatness.
 
As a friend to others, your voice matters.  Your circle of influence is far greater than what you might think.  The thoughts you think often vary greatly from the things you say.  But when you DO give voice to your views, those thoughtful sentiments are powerful.  When your friends watch your mannerisms as you say what you say, they take note.  When you share your own struggles, they watch you, some living vicariously through your trials and tribulations… learning, liking, and disliking what they see.  But, as a true friend, they grow WITH you and not AGAINST you.
 
And let’s not forget your critics and enemies. 
 
Yes, they are watching you, too. 
 
All too often, we are too concerned about what “they” are learning ABOUT us. 
 
But more often than not, they, too, are learning FROM us. 
 
In reality, if you are comfortable with someone watching you, then you are probably aware of the tremendous expanse of communication we exchange during the waking moment we share with others.
 
Are you in a good mood?  Others can usually see, feel, and sometimes hear your mood (if you’re a screamer).
 
Are you pensive about something at work, at home… or at some distant place and time in the future?
 
Are you “here” or “there”?
 
Without ever hearing the sound of your voice, your children, spouse, and coworkers know the answer to that question, too.
 
Though you might not utter, mutter, or even sputter words, you are constantly communicating.
 
And as the leader of your own life, it is imperative that you understand this superlative truth regarding communication:
 
You communicate every single minute of every single day.
 
This may sound silly, but when you are you sleeping, you are communicating to yourself and to others that you are resting (most likely because you really NEED the rest).
 
Likewise, if you are eating, you are satisfying an urge that was communicated from within; and you are communicating to others that you are using this particular mealtime to reenergize your mind and body.  As human beings, we all understand this simple but important fact.
 
Of course, sleeping and eating are obvious examples of how we communicate to others and ourselves.
 
Less obvious are the daily nonverbal exchanges we all share.
 
Do you continue typing on your keyboard when someone enters your workspace, desiring a conversation?  Or do you stop and energize their spirit with respect, regard, and remuneration for the effort they have invested in seeking your attention?  Do you PAY undivided attention?
 
Do you meet your children with the hug they clearly want… and need?  Or do you think they have all the physical confirmation of love they will ever need?
 
Do you multitask when you should be focused?
 
If you do, then you probably don’t notice when “they” are watching you.
 
Did you know they WANT you to succeed?
 
Did you know they NEED you to succeed?
 
Whether you realize it or not, someone has their eyes on you.
 
Someone knows your habits, your lifestyle, and the little things you do.
 
Of course, they know the big things, too.
 
They are aware of all that you do… the good, the bad, and the ugly.
 
Believe it or not, this is a good thing.
 
When you grow, they will grow.
 
And when they grow because of you, we all win.
 
As we look to the future, we all want what’s best for us, individually.
 
Indeed, everyone is looking for an ideal.
 
We all want the ideal job, the ideal boss, and the ideal life.
 
We don’t want Perfection (we don’t want something that doesn’t exist).
 
An ideal is not Perfection…
 
An ideal is something each of us uniquely identifies as “right for me, but maybe not for you, him, or her.”
 
I love being imperfect, primarily because it reminds me that other people are imperfect, too.  I have no right to judge others any more than I have a right to live their life.
 
If it did in fact exist, Perfection would be something that’s necessarily right for ALL of us… an extremely broad range that’s perhaps far too suitable for argument.
 
However… a better tomorrow (than today) seems like something upon which we all can agree (ideally, of course).
 
Indeed, we all want to succeed at whatever it is we are seeking: motherhood, fatherhood, employment, or just plain ol’ life.
 
In the aggregate, we all want YOU to succeed.
 
We all NEED you to succeed.
 
Accordingly…
 
Pay attention.
 
More importantly…
 
Pay attention to what you pay attention.
 
Someone is watching you.
 
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
 
Accept. Adapt. Achieve. ®
 
What do YOU want to achieve?